1. Field
Embodiments of the invention relate to pole guides for utility vehicles and the like. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to a pole guide tong with a polymer pole guide cover.
2. Related Art
A utility pole is a column or post used to support lines providing various public utilities, such as electric power, Internet and television cable, phone cable, and fiber optic cable. Utility poles also provide support for other equipment, such as street lights, traffic lights, cellular network antennas, transformers, capacitors, reclosers, and fuses. Utility poles are typically constructed from various species of wood but can also be constructed from steel, concrete, and composites such as fiberglass. Some utility poles, especially dead-end or termination poles, are supported by guy-wires. Utility poles may also be tagged, branded, or otherwise marked to identify critical information. Other names for utility poles include transmission pole, telephone pole, telecommunication pole, telegraph pole, and telegraph post.
Construction and utility equipment may be equipped to lift, move, and place heavy loads, such as utility poles. Such equipment may include a boom and a winch for engaging and moving heavy loads. By way of example, digger derricks and similar utility vehicles are used to set utility poles and the like by digging or drilling holes and then placing the utility poles into the holes. Digger derricks may include an auger to dig the hole, a winch to lift the pole, and a pole guide mounted on a boom to stabilize and guide the placement of the pole as the pole is positioned and then placed in the hole using the boom and winch.
Pole guides typically include a pair of metal arms or grapple tongs, known as pole guide tongs, that each have a generally arcuate shape for selectively engaging and securing the pole as the pole is lifted. The pole guide arms are used in pairs to pincer the load. With the pole secured by the pole guide, the boom can then be moved to position the pole to be placed into the drilled hole. To effectively engage the pole, the arms of the pole guide protrude outward from the boom.
The pole guide tongs are typically 0.75 inches thick and may bite into the utility pole or other load being guided. This biting can cause the load to bind to the pole guides. This biting, and the resultant removal process, may result in damage to both the load and the pole guide assembly. The biting is a result, in part, of the narrow and often metallic pole guide tongs pressing firmly against the utility pole, which is often made of wood or a relatively soft material.